Kolkata has a distinct place in the world of biryanis, with  its very lightly spiced yakhni compared biryani’s from other parts of India. The main distinction being the potatoes cooked with the yakhni cropping up in the biryani. The nawab of Awadh, Wajid Ali Shah, originally based out of Lucknow, India took refuge to Kolkata…

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Kolkata style mutton biryani

Kolkata has a distinct place in the world of biryanis, with  its very lightly spiced yakhni compared biryani’s from other parts of India. The main distinction being the potatoes cooked with the yakhni cropping up in the biryani. The nawab of Awadh, Wajid Ali Shah, originally based out of Lucknow, India took refuge to Kolkata after British empire annexed Awadh. Nawab brought the Awadhi style of cooking biryani to Kolkata.Nawab always encouraged his chefs to experiment with the food. At that time potatoes started to be harvested in India and Nawab’s chef brought in the unique distinction of adding potatoes, cooked in the yakhni and it was served to nobles of the Nawab. That’s how it became a tradition of Kolkata biryani.

Living in USA for last 18 years, I am always searching for biryani that matches the Kolkata style biryani. South Indian biryani or Pakistani biryani is quite easily available, but it is rare or almost impossible to find Kolkata style biryani. I used to make biryani with Shaan Pilau biryani masala in the past, which was close to Kolkata style biryani. But Shaan rebranded their spices few years back and the same Pilau biryani masala is not available anymore in the market. So I started my journey of trying out making biryani at home with my own homemade biryani masala.

After trying it out a few times, now I have a solid recipe and a process for making the Kolkata style biryani with potatoes cooked with lightly spiced yakhni. The entire process takes me two and a half hours, but at the end of it, enjoying the biryani with the family is hugely gratifying . It involves following six steps

1. Make the biryani spice  (Biryani masala)

This is the spice mix that holds all the secret ingredients. The yakhni to cooked with this spice mix. To make to spice, roast dry spices – cinnamon, green cardamom, black cardamom, cloves, nutmeg (Jaiphal), mace (javitri), caraway seed (shah jeera), fennel seed, black pepper, star anises. Once the roasted spice mis cools down, bring the spice mix to make a powder

2. Make the birista (caramelized fried onion)

Birista, the caramelized fried onion is an important component of the biryani. So I recommend to. make the birista at the very beginning. To make the birista, slice the onion and fry it in ghee (purified butter)

3. Marinate and cook the meat

Marinate the mutton (preferred meat)  for 30 minutes with ginger, garlic paste, yogurt, salt, biryani masala, red chili powder, ground black pepper. Peel and cut the potatoes in half and add a bit of yellow food color. Heat oil, fry the potatoes and then fry the meat for 5 minutes. Then transfer the meat and the potatoes in instant pot of pressure cooker, mix a part of birista with the mutton and potatoes and pressure cook it. In instant pot, it takes 15 minutes of manual pressure cooking to cook the mutton. Once the mutton is cooked, keep one cup of stock (yakhni) and store the rest of the stock.

4. Cook the rice

Soak the basmati rice in water for 30 minutes. I recommend the ratio of meat and rice to be 2:1, that means for 1 kg of meat, add 500 gas of rice. Put the dry spices (cinnamon, green cardamom, cloves, nutmeg. mace) in a cheese cloth and tie it up. In a pot of water, add salt, the spices tied up in the cheese cloth and let the water come to boil. Once water starts boiling, add the rice in the water. Let the rice cook upto 80% and drain the water

5.Final assembly

We are at the final, but most important stage of making biryani.  Many ingredients to be used in this stage. I recommend to gather each of the ingredients in small bowls before starting the assembling process. Ingredients needed for assembling are

1. cooked meat, potatoes
2. 1 cup of remaining yakhni (mutton stock)
3. 80% cooked rice
4. boiled eggs
5. barista
6. biryani masala
7. grated khoa kheer
8. aloo bukhara (dried plum)
9. lemon juice
10. ghee and butter
11. saffron and yellow food color mixed in milk
12. Kewra water and rose water mixed in milk

Grease a pan with ghee, add a layer of meat, potatoes and boiled egg. Sprinkle 1 tsp of biryani masala on top of the meat. Add a layer of rice. On top of the rice sprinkle half the amount of whoa kheer, lemon juice, ghee, saffron/ yellow food color, scents (Kewra and rose water),add aloo bukhara and birista. Now repeat the layers one more time.

6. Final Dum-Phukt (Steaming)

Heat the oven to 350 degree F. Close the lid of the pan where the biryani has been assembled. Traditionally the lid is closed with a dough of flour so that the steam cannot go out and the aroma of yakhni, saffron and all the ingredients stay inside and cooked together. Cook with the closed lid in the oven at least for 30 minutes. You can cook it for longer in lower heat and it is highly recommended

Finally take out the biryani from the oven, mix the meat and rice together and serve it with raita.

Making of Kolkata style mutton biryani

Priya Banerjee

Yields 2 cups

Serves 8

1338

Kolkata style mutton biryani

Kolkata style mutton biryani made at home from scratch

2 hrPrep Time

1 hrCook Time

3 hrTotal Time

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Ingredients

Biryani Masala (dry spices)
• 6 green cardamom
• 1 big black cardamom
• 3/4 tsp cloves
• 4 piece of cinnamon sticks
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 star anise
• 1 nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp javitri or mace
• 2 tsp fennel
• 2 tsp shahjeera or caraway seed
For birista
• 1 large onion
• 2 tbsp ghee
For the meat
• 2 lb mutton
• 4 tbsp yogurt
• 3 tbsp biryani masala
• 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 and 1/2 tbsp ginger paste
• 1 and 1/2 tbsp garlic paste
• 3 tbsp birista
• 4 potatoes
• 1 black cardamom
• 1 star anise
• 1 star anise
• 1/2 nutmeg (jaiphol)
For rice
• 500 gm rice (rice : meat = 1:2)
• 3 tbsp salt
• whole spice - 2 sticks of cinnamon, 3green cardamom, 1/2 tsp cloves, 1/2 nutmeg, 1/4 tsp javitri
Final assembly
• Cooked mutton
• 1 cup mutton stock
• 80% Cooked rice
• 1 cup grated khoya kheer
• 2 tsp biryani masala
• Remaining Birista
• 8 piece aloo bukhara
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• two pinches of saffron and two pinches of yellow food color mixed with 2 tbsp milk
• 2 tsp Keira water, 2 tsp rose water mixed with 2 tbsp milk
• 1 tbsp butter and 3 tbsp ghee
• 6 boiled eggs

Instructions

How to make biryani masala
1. Lighly roast all the spices and grind it to powder in a grinder
How to make birista
2. Heat 2 tbsp of ghee and fry the sliced onion
How to cook the meat
3. Add ginger, garlic, yogurt salt, red chili powder, black pepper powder and marinate the meat for 30 min
4. Peel and cut the potatoes in halves
5. Add 2 pinches of yellow food color to the potatoes
6. Pour 4 tbsp oil in a pan, heat the oil,
7. Add the potatoes and fry to for 2 minutes and keep it aside
8. Add the black cardamom, nutmeg and star anise in the oil
9. Add the marinated meat and fry it for 5 minutes.
10. Transfer the meat and potatoes in instant pot or pressure cooker. Add the birista to the meat
11. If cooking in instant pot, add 1 cup water and cook for 15 min.
12. After cooking 1 cup of stock(yakhni) should be left
How to cook the rice
13. Wash the rice
14. Put the dry spices in a cheese cloth and drop it in the pan full if boiling water
15. Add salt
16. When the water starts to boil, add rice
17. When the rice is 80% cooked, drain the water
Final assembly
18. Grease an aluminum foil or glass bowl that can be put inside oven with tsp of ghee
19. Add half the meet, potatoes and 1/2 cup of the mutton stock
20. Cut the boiled eggs in half and add half the amount of boiled eggs
21. Add 1 tsp of biryani masala
22. Add half the rice
23. Add 1/2 cup of the khoya cheer
24. Add 1 tsp of lemon juice
25. Add 2 tbsp of ghee and butter mixture
26. Add half the milk mixed with saffron and food color
27. Add half the milk mixed with Keira water and rose color
28. Add 4 pieces of aloo bukhara
29. Add half the birista
30. Repeat another layer of meat and rice
Final cooking
31. Heat over at 300 degree F
32. Cover the briyani with aluminum foil and cook it for 45 min

Nutrition

Calories

1338 cal

Fat

123 g

Carbs

50 g

Protein

9 g

Click Here For Full Nutrition, Exchanges, and My Plate Info

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References

The curious case of potato in Kolkata biryani and how the British fed us a lie

more-lifestyle Updated: Apr 21, 2020 16:37 IST For those of us growing up in the cocooned city of Kolkata, comprising Victoria Memorial’s buggy rides, roadside bhelpuri and phuchka, the restaurants and nightlife of Park Street and the club culture of Tolly and Royal Calcutta Golf Club, biryani was always something that was to be relished and had whenever one got the opportunity.